Thought Articles

Reproduced with permission from Çakmak Yayınevi ve Medya Limited Șirketi. ÇAKMAK PUBLISHING is pleased to publish this 2015 edition of the Global Renewable Energy Guide, which has been published annually since 2010. The Global Renewable Energy Guide has been designed to provide an overview of the applicable legislation and the incentives available to renewable energy companies worldwide, and to help investors, lenders and government agencies understand and compare the conditions applicable in 32 jurisdictions around the World. Under Romanian law, renewable energy comprises the energy generated from the following sources: (i) wind; (ii) solar; (iii) aero thermal; (iv) geothermal; (v) hydrothermal and ocean energy; (vi) hydraulic energy; (vii) biomass; (viii) landfill gas; (ix) sewage treatment plant gas; and (x) biogas.

Reproduced by kind permission of LexisNexis - Lexis®PSL Competition. The latest amendments to the merger rules were introduced in June 2015 and give the Romanian Competition Council (RCC) the power to modify the turnover based thresholds that trigger mandatory notification of economic concentrations. This means that the RCC now has the flexibility to adjust the value of the thresholds based on the socio-economic context. Adjustments can be made to the thresholds after obtaining the approval of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Tourism.

This article appeared in the 2015 edition of The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Private Equity; published by Global Legal Group Ltd, London. The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Private Equity provides the international practitioner and in-house counsel with a comprehensive worldwide legal analysis of the laws and regulations of private equity. As a general feature, Romania is a market with significant potential, still being a rather emerging market; this potential for growth, combined with the controlled operating framework ensured by its membership to the EU create an attractive balance for investors. The increased availability of financing in the past years was also a key driver for PE transactions. Notably, the IT field benefits from a favourable tax regime – being one of the most ascending business areas; also, the major recent decrease of VAT on food and beverages is expected to give a an additional boost to the retail industry.

Reproduced with permission from Law Business Research Ltd. This article was first published in The Intellectual Property Review - Edition 4 (published in May 2015 – editor Robert L Baechtold). The Romanian legal framework on IP rights has been gradually harmonised with the corresponding European legislation (relevant EU Directives and EU Regulations) and, generally, with the principles provided in international treaties and conventions. In Romania, in recent years, there has been significantly more awareness about protection of IP rights and this is reflected in the increasing number of applications for protection. The increase of patent and trademarks filings is expected to generate an increased demand for professional services in the field of IP rights.

Reproduced with permission from Law Business Research Ltd. This article was first published in The Government Procurement Review - Edition 3 (published in May 2015 – editors Jonathan Davey and Amy Gatenby). The third edition of The Government Procurement Review brings even wider geographic coverage than the second edition, now covering six continents and 27 national chapters (including the EU chapter). In Romania, public procurement contracts are essentially regulated by Government Emergency Ordinance No. 34/2006 on the award of public procurement contracts, public works concession contracts and service concession contracts (GEO No. 34/2006). Specific sector regulation and clarifications of GEO No. 34/2006 can be found in the secondary legislation, consisting of government decisions and National Authority for the Regulation and Monitoring of Public Procurement (ANRMAP) orders. GEO No. 34/2006 transposes EC directives on public procurement and creates the legal framework to secure compliance with the principles of contract awarding in public procurement: non-discrimination, equal treatment, mutual recognition, transparency, proportionality, optimum use of funds and undertaking of liability.

The publication addresses the most important legal issues relevant for legal practitioners and business people dealing with cloud computing products and services in 26 jurisdictions across the region. The Romania chapter briefly outlines the non-sector-specific data protection requirements that organizations or institutions need to bear in mind in relation to their use of cloud computing.